Finally!

After a ridiculously long trip, we are back in Mumbai. We left our house at 7 am on Monday morning, and opened the door of our flat at 1:30 am Wednesday. Whew! Miraculously, all of our luggage made it, as did the 6 bottles of wine and vodka that we smuggled in, so I'm happy! :) In fact, I'm about to crack a bottle open right now! Hahah!

The flight from Newark to Mumbai was the killer- we ended up sitting on the tarmack for 3 hours before we even took off, then circled Mumbai for an hour before landing- making it an 18.5 hour flight. The kids did shockingly well, and that was a huge relief. Catherine slept, listened to her iPod, colored and watched the on-demand movies- all of her favorite things! :) Ryan is apparently immune to Benedryl...it had no "sleepy" effect on him whatsoever...but at least he did not scream the entire trip.

New Student Orientation at the American School of Bombay (ASB) started at 7:45 am Wednesday morning, so we braced ourselves and rolled out of bed a mere 3 hours after we got in. Catherine got to see her classroom, meet her teachers and some new kids, and see some friends that she'd made over the spring. We are VERY excited about her attending this school- it is so cool! She'll have class Monday-Friday 8am-12pm, so she is sure to make quick and very close friends. School was SUPPOSED to have started today, but the Indian government has postponed all schools by a week due to the H1N1 scare....so her first day will be next Thursday. In the meantime, the ASB has set up some at-home studies via the internet- pretty modern!

So we are taking this time to get over our jet lag...Ryan is making that pretty hard to do, as he's up for long periods of the night screaming his head off. Not sure what is up with him, if it's his reflux or what, but I just feel so bad for him- I wish I could make it all better! Catherine has been getting up between 3 and 4 am, but plays so quietly we barely know she's awake. A few months ago, I would have forced her to go back to sleep...but ya gotta pick and choose your battles, ya know?!

We are expecting our air shipment this next week- more food and lots and lots of baby stuff. It will be nice to have the bouncy seat, the swing, etc. Hopefully it will help Ryan sleep a little better!

That's all for now- off to take a nap!

Family

Mike and I are so blessed. We have had opportunities in our lives that people only dream of. And we have amazing children. I try- every day- to remind myself of how blessed I am- even if it's a tough day. And here are some snapshots I've taken to prove it! :)

Mike got a special treat the other day- a nap with both the kids. I'm still jealous!


I tried to get profile close-ups of the kids, to see how much they look alike.



I LOVE LOVE LOVE this picture of Catherine and Ryan- Catherine's eyes look so beautiful, and Ryan is totally grinning! :)


We are headed back to India on Monday, so this weekend will be spent packing, prepping the house, and having some last-minutes drinks with friends! We've had an awesome summer, and we're excited to return in December!

Boy vs. BEAST

Ryan had a doctor's appointment yesterday for one last checkup before we leave for India, and WOW, did we get a surprise! The kid is a MONSTER!

Here are his current stats:
Weight: 8 lbs, 12 oz (up 3 lbs, 1 oz since leaving the NICU 4 weeks ago)
Length: 20.5 inches (up 2 full inches since birth)

I actually had to ask the nurse to weigh him again, because I could not believe it! The doctor said he's doing very, very well for a preemie, and we are so grateful for that.
Ryan is not the teeny tiny baby he once was- our little one is already 6 weeks old! Where does the time go?!?

The kids

I have not posted many pictures of the kids lately...it's sad how much less time one has once child #2 comes along...
I did force a "cuddle session" onto the kids the other night so I could snap some shots. Catherine loved it! Ryan did not.

So I tried another tactic- I laid Ryan down on the couch and got right up in his face- I'm such a meanie! I wanted to capture his "rolls"- he's gotten so much bigger already!

Look at the difference in our color! I sure do hope he gets a LITTLE darker!

Look at that chin!

His "who, me?" look...I'm sure we'll see this one again!

Proof is in the puddin': chunka munka legs!

They are sure to be the best of friends!

The power of a woman

I love my husband. I really do. He is an honest, hard-working, loving, funny man. But having him home (for less than 24 hours, mind you), has made me realize that I possess powers that he may only dream of. I am SUPER WOMAN!

I can:
1. Shower in under 5 minutes- this includes shaving legs and pits!

2. Walk around the kitchen with an infant attached to me (literally), making dinner one-handed!

3. Listen to 3 different people talking to me at once- Mike, Catherine and Ryan!

4. Refrain from making any bodily noises for at least 5 minutes after walking in the door!

5. Get from the back door and into the car- and be driving- in under 15 minutes!

6. Sleep for 5 hours (with 2 30-minute interruptions), and still be relatively pleasant the next day!

7. Wrangle an overtired, spastic 3 1/2 year old and a screaming infant at the Sunglasses Hut while he takes his time deciding whether he looks cooler in the Maui Jims or the Oakleys, during which I occasionally call out that he looks HOT in a particular pair- JUST GET THEM ALREADY!

8. Color, draw and play "school" for at least 1 hour each day!

9. Sit through the movie "Cars" so many times, I know the lines by heart!

10. Set the table with cutlery appropriate for the meal we're about to eat!

I am SUPER WOMAN! Hear me ROAR!

In all seriousness, I love my man- and he loves me. That's what counts, right? :)